Union City is a city located in Hudson County, New Jersey. As of the United States 2000 Census, the city had a total population of 67,088.
Union City is located at 40°46'4" North, 74°1'55" West (40.767651, -74.031833). It is bordered by North Bergen and West New York to the north, North Bergen to the west, Weehawken to the east, and Hoboken and Jersey City to the south.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.3 mi2 (3.3 km2). All of it is land and none of it is covered by water. It meets with Jersey City and North Bergen at a single point.
The city is only two miles from New York City, one mile to the New Jersey Turnpike, 4 miles from the Garden State Parkway, and is situated at the junction of Route 495, Route 3, and U.S. 1&9.
As of the census of 2000, there are 67,088 people, 22,872 households, and 16,056 families residing in the city. The population density is 20,395.9/km2 (52,977.8/mi2). There are 23,741 housing units at an average density of 7,217.7/km2 (18,747.7/mi2). The racial makeup of the city is 58.38% White, 3.64% African American, 0.70% Native American, 2.15% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 28.19% from other races, and 6.87% from two or more races. 82.32% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race. Although Union City at one time boast the highest Cuban population (second only to Miami, Floriday), Cuban residents have spread out to to other regions of North Hudson County, which now holds that disctinction. Because of the still-high Cuban population, the major New York City television news outlets will invariably journey to Union City to interview citizens when news items involving Cuba or Fidel Castro arise. Moreover, Union City still boasts the largest Hispanic population percentage in New Jersey, according to demographic statistic reports by the Urban Enterprise Zone. It also has a very diversified Hispanic population with Cubans, Dominicans, and the more recent South Americans and Central Americans. Almost 60% of the population is foreign born and 53% speak English less than "very well."
Most people live in two or three family houses and apartment buildings. There are 22,872 households out of which 36.6% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.4% are married couples living together, 19.3% have a female householder with no husband present, and 29.8% are non-families. 23.0% of all households are made up of individuals and 7.5% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.92 and the average family size is 3.40.
In the city the population is spread out with 25.3% under the age of 18, 11.0% from 18 to 24, 34.3% from 25 to 44, 19.4% from 45 to 64, and 10.0% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 32 years. For every 100 females there are 100.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 98.8 males.
As of 2000, Union City's employment breakdown is thus: 27% Manufacturing, 15% Professional, 15% Retail, 8% Transportation, 8% Finance/Insurance/Real Estate, 8% Wholesale Trade, 6% Business and Trade, 5% Construction, 4% Personal Service, 3% Public Administration, 3% Communications, 1% Entertainment/Recreation
The median income for a household in the city is $30,642, and the median income for a family is $32,246. Males have a median income of $25,598 versus $19,794 for females. The per capita income for the city is $13,997. 21.4% of the population and 18.6% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 28.3% of those under the age of 18 and 19.3% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line. The Brookings Institute studies rank Union City among the 92 most economically depressed localities in the United States, with 18.1% of the population and 27.5% of the children falling below the poverty line. The New Jersey Municipal Distress Index, which is based on social, economic, fiscal and physical indicators, ranks Union City as the 3rd most distressed community in the state.
The area of what is today Union City was originally inhabited by the Lenape Native Americans, but was later settled by the Germans in 1851, who moved across the Hudson River from New York in search of affordable land and open space. From the mid-1800s to the early 1900s, German Americans and Dutch dominated the area. They, along with Swiss and Austrian immigrants, founded the European-style lace making industries, for which they were famous. Union City and West New York became the embroidery capitol of the United States, and the embroidery industry's trademark is on the Union City Seal. At the turn of the 20th Century, Irish and Italian immigrants came to the city, and dominated the city until the late 1960s. The first Cuban immigrants arrived in 1940s, having been attracted to the city in search of work after hearing of its famed embroidery factories. Successive waves of immigrants from Eastern Europe, the Near East and Latin America have contributed imagination and skill to the industry in subsequent years. Then, as today, Union City is a destination for immigrants because it serves as a more affordable and less congested alternative to Manhattan.
Union City was incorporated on June 1, 1925 by merging the two towns of West Hoboken and Union Hill. Interestingly, one of the city's two high schools, Union Hill High School, continues to bear the name that former town to this day. After World War II, veterans relocated to Bergen County, causing a short-lived decline in the population. In the late 1960s, a large migration of Cuban refugees fleeing Fidel Castro's regime came and settled in Union City, making Union City the city with the largest Cuban population in the U.S. after Miami , hence its nickname, "Havana on the Hudson." The Cubans have also helped transform Union City into the city that it is today. In recent years however, the Hispanic population has diversified. Today's influx of immigrants comes from the Dominican Republic, Central and South America. Middle class people from New York City have also settled here.
The easternmost streets of Union City, in particular Mountain Road and Palisade Avenue, boast some impressive views of neighboring Weehawken, Hoboken and the New York City skyline, a feature which, in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks, was exploited by numerous Union City citizens, such as those who stood in the courtyard of the Union City Boxing Club to view the event's aftereffects. A piece of wreckage from the attack was used to create a monument that now stands in that courtyard.
Source:
UnionCityNewJersey.com
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